


Lima.Oscar.Victor.Echo

by Krimskrams



Category: Call the Midwife
Genre: F/F, F/M, Mostly Fluff, Useless Lesbians, a bit of angst, wlw
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-08
Updated: 2018-12-28
Packaged: 2019-03-28 15:37:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,149
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13907085
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Krimskrams/pseuds/Krimskrams
Summary: Valerie Dyer, former army surgeon, now a trauma surgeon at St. Raymond Nonnatus Hospital in London did not expect that adjusting to civilian life would be quite so eventful. But that is what happens when one of your best friends falls in love with her flatmate, your other best friend and her wife are trying to get pregnant and you fall in love with the very pretty O&G registrar, who is most likely straight.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Truly a modern AU that nobody asked for, but when you don't get the all the gays you want in canon you write fan fiction. Hopefully it's not too terrible.

Valerie Dyer had not been overjoyed with the idea of having to cover the night shift in her aunt’s pub, the Black Sails. She loved the place having practically grown up there, but having to cover for her sister who was clearly just going to go out with her good for nothing boyfriend was not how Val had imagined she would spend her last friday night off before starting at her new place of work on Monday. With her luck she wouldn’t have a Friday off in the next few months because of shifts, but Joanne couldn’t care less. So here she was, a decorated army surgeon pulling pints in an East London pub.

The only upside was that Trixie was off work and had decided to come down and keep her company. The blonde was now sat across from her at the bar nursing her Virgin Mary. The two had met on Val’s first tour to Afghanistan. They had hit it off right away over their shared love of chocolate and a good period drama, even though they were fiercely opposed on which was the best adaptation of Pride and Predjudice. Trixie had shown Val how to handle the life on an army base without going mad and they had been a formidable pair in theatre. Trixie was a brilliant nurse but during their next tour she had lost her boyfriend to a road-side IED and had found solace in the bottle. She had made it through the tour but had resigned and checked herself into rehab when she got back to the UK. She was now three years sober and had qualified as a midwife as she did not want to go back working in an A&E. Valerie looked at her friend, worried that this might not be the best environment for her, but she also knew that Trixie was well aware of her limits.

”Thanks for coming down Trixie, I know it’s not always easy for you to be here.”

”Oh, don’t you worry, I know the bartender here won’t tempt me with anything and we’ve hardly had a chance to spend time together since you got back,” Trixie pouted at her.

”We’ll be living and working together for at least the next six months Trix, I think you’ll tire of me soon enough, ” Val laughed, shaking her head.

”Well I couldn’t stay in the apartment, Barbara just got home with Tom and I didn’t want to intrude.” Barbara was Trixie’s old university roommate and when Trixie had left the army the two of them had decided to share a flat in London to keep down the cost. Now Valerie was moving into their spare bedroom to get out off having to share a one-bedroom flat with her sister. 

Valerie liked Barbara a lot, when Trixie had first introduced them to each other they had spent an entire night sharing embarssing stories about Trixie much to her chagrin. They had only laughed at her telling her it was her own fault for bringing them together. Barbara was a physiotherapist and worked at Val’s new hospital as well. Her long time boyfriend Tom, was a nice guy if a bit dull. He was a minister at a local church and adored Barbara, and as long as she was happy Valerie had no objections. Trixie on the other hand did, but Val was almost certain that there was something deeper behind her friend’s reluctance towards Barbara’s boyfriend. But she had learned early on in her friendship with Trixie that her friend would tell her things when she was ready to and not a minute sooner, so she had decided to wait it out. 

”I’m just glad to have some company so I don’t really care what your reasons are, darling,” Val said and Trixie pouted at her just as Bill, who was one of the regulars came over and asked for a pint, which Val served up with ease. She had worked in the bar during her summer breaks to save money for university. 

”So Bill, how are the kids?” she asked while she waited for the glass to fill up.

”They’re brilliant, John’s off to university in september and Annie just sat her GCSE’s,” he said smiling.

”Oh, that’s wonderful, where is he off to?”

”He’s had an unconditional from Leeds and a conditional from Durham so hopefully he’ll have done well enough.”

”Well best of luck to him and tell him when he makes his decision he’ll have a pint on the house waiting to see him off.” She handed the man his beer.

”Thanks Val, have a good night.” He returned to his friends in the booth furthest down the corner. Val turned to Trixie.

”I’m impressed, do you know all of the people in this pub?” Trixie teased.

Valerie rolled her eyes, ”No just the nice ones and all the pretty girls.” Trixie scoffed at her. ” You are incorrigible, Valerie Dyer.”

”Nope just gay as the day is long.” Her friend laughed just as the door to the pub swung open and a group of about ten people walked in and started looking around in search of a table.

”There is a table in the back room that’s free,” Val called out to the group. The tall woman that was in front of the rest, thanked her. Upon hearing this voice Trixie turned around and with surprise in her voice said ”Chummy, what on earth are you doing on this side of town?”

The tall woman turned to Trixie and walked over to give her a hug, ”Trixie old girl I didn’t think I’d see you here. We are here to celebrate my new job, Peter and I are leaving for Mali next week to go work for Doctors without Borders.” 

While Trixie and Chummy were standing there talking the rest of the party ordered their drinks, and Val busied herself while her friend was otherwise occupied. She recognised a couple of people that she had met when she had managed to get home for Trixie’s birthday party last year when she was on leave. She said hello to Cynthia who she knew worked as a midwife with Trixie now and who she really liked especially since they had been teamed up for said birthday party’s big round of games and they had beaten everyone.

”I heard you are coming to the A&E is that right,” Cynthia asked with a big smile while Valerie was perparing her gin and tonic.

”Yes I start on Monday,” Valerie said.

”That’s wonderful, then I guess I’ll see you around pretty soon,” she said taking her drink from Val.

”Yes I guess so, have a nice evening.” Cynthia smiled at her.

”Do you want to join us Trixie?” said one of the other girls, a tall striking brunette about Val’s own age, as the rest of the party started moving towards the back room, drinks in hand. Trixie looked over at Val and said ”Do you mind if I just sit down and talk for a bit, Chummy and I did our midwifery training together, I’ll be back before you know it.”

”No of course not, I might actually be able to do some work without you distracting me with your gossiping and wonderful company.” Valerie said laughing at her friend. Trixie squealed, leaned over the bar and kissed Val on the cheek. ”You are a brick Valerie Dyer.”

Val watched amused as her friend walked to the back and then turned towards the store room to fetch some napkins as they were running out. When she came back a few minutes later a woman was standing at the bar waiting for her. She hadn’t seen her com in and as she got closer she couldn’t help but notice that the woman in question was extremely pretty and had the kindest brown eyes she had ever seen. 

”Hello, could I get two pints of lager and two glasses of red wine, please.” She gave Valerie a warm smile which made Val’s heart beat just a little bit faster.

”Yeah sure,” Val managed to answer without stuttering too much and turned to fetch glasses while admonishing herself quietly for being so easily distracted by a pretty girl. She turned back to the bar.

”So do you really think you can handle this amount of alcohol on your own,” she said, immediately regretting making such a terrible joke while pouring the wine. The woman laughed a little before shooting back ”You’d be surprised at what I can handle.” Did she wink as she said that. Val was sure that she was imagining things, this girl couldn’t be flirting with her. Could she?

”I’m always delighted at being proven wrong,” she said testing the waters. She got a teasing smile in return, ”If I didn’t have work in morning I’d take you up on that challenge,” the woman said as she took her credit card from her purse handing it to Valerie.

”Well another time then,” Valerie said smiling as she handled the transaction, when she turned back from fetching a pen for the woman to sign her reciept she saw that a very attractive man in his early thirties had come up next to the woman.

”So why are you taking so long, Luce? We were already late here and Jimmy has already started saying that he’s gonna die of thirst.” he said smiling at the woman, elbowing her in the side jokingly. The woman simply rolled her eyes at him before turning back to Val. ”Thank you very much.”

”You’re welcome, have a good night,” Val said smiling at them as they picked up the drinks.

”You too,” the man said giving her a warm smile before they walked towards the back room, talking and laughing, walking closely together. Val looked as they walked away laughing at herself for being an absolute mess, clearly those two were a couple and the woman had simply been going along with Valerie’s terrible joke. She shook her head blaming her lack of finesse in picking up signals on having spent the last few years focused on making it through her tours. The army wasn’t the best place to work on flirting with women.

But as she went back to the mundane task of cleaning glasses and pouring pints she found herself wishing the woman would come back so she could talk to her again. After a while Trixie returned with a big smile on her face.

”So darling have you missed me terribly,” she said as she sat down across the bar. 

”Yes, I thought I was going to go mad,” Val answered. ”Did you have a nice time catching up then?”

”Yes rather, I haven’t seen Chummy in a couple of months so that was nice and then some of the doctors from the ward showed up which is always nice!” Trixie leant on the bar. ”Did anything interesting happen while I was gone?”

Val considered telling her about her failed attempt at flirting with the very attractive woman with the lovely eyes. However she decided that getting teased about her lack of game in public was not what she wanted tonight, she simply said, ”Not really.”

”How absolutely dreary,” Trixie laughed as she reached down into her purse to get her phone. Valerie looked at the watch on her arm, she had another two hours to go before the pub would close at midnight. When she looked back up at her friend she saw that Trixie was looking at her phone in confusion.

”What’s the matter Trix?” Val asked bringing her friend back from her reverie.

”Barbara has tried to call me three times and I had completely missed it, I’m sorry but she never calls and I just have to see what is wrong,” Trixie said squeezing her hand before getting of the bar stool walking out the door to call her friend back. 

Val looked after her friend, she had looked very distraught which was not a common occurence with Trixie who even when going through rough times always tried to keep a positive outlook. Something was definietly going on here, Valerie thought as she turned back to the bartending, making sure her customers were happy.

After about 20 minutes she started getting worried and went out to find Trixie sat at one of the outside tables still talking on the phone. As she didn’t want to intrude to much Valerie simply decided to go back inside but as she did she crashed into the woman from earlier, almost causing them to fall. To save the situation Val simply took hold off her to steady her and they ended up in an awkward sort of embrace, pushed up against the door. They stood there for just a moment longer catching their breath looking at eachother before the woman started to giggle. 

”I am so sorry,” Val said letting go of her. ” Are you alright?”

”Yes, it’s me and my high heels, we don’t really go well together,” she said smiling up at Val while straightening her coat. ”How about you, I hope I didn’t hurt you.”

”Me, no, I’ve been through worse.” 

”Oh that’s good then, thank you very much for saving me from a rather awkward fall.” 

”Well, that’s the allround service we provide here at the Black Sails.” Val joked trying not to think about how nice she had smelled or how soft her skin was to the touch. 

”Well I have to say your service has been wonderful and if I didn’t have to get up for work I definitely would stay and prove you wrong on the subject of my drinking capabilities.” 

Just as Val was going to answer the man from before came towards them and called out, ”Lucille, why didn’t you wait I told you I’d follow you home.”

”Well Tony, I was just going out to see if the cab had arrived and I tripped over my feet on my way out and… I’m sorry I don’t know your name,” she turned to Valerie.

”It’s Valerie.”

”… Valerie here saved me from making an utter fool of myself.” 

”Well you do need help with preventing that every now and again,” Tony said smiling. Lucille scoffed at him before turning back to Valerie. ”Thank you so much again.”

”No, it was a pleasure bumping into you” Val responded, groaning simultaneously on the inside as those words left her mouth. Lucille simply gave her a bright smile and Val held the door open for the couple in an attempt to minimise the awkwardness of the situation.

”Look there is the cab,” Tony said and walked out to get in the car. Lucille said good night to Val and followed him out into the cab. Val stood there for a split second cursing herself for being such a dork before she realised that it didn’t matter and walked inside to the bar. She started wiping it down preparing to close up for the night. Most of the guest were getting ready to leave and a lot of the regulars shouted their goodbyes to her as they left. She waved them off as they left her to her obsessing over a certain woman with a lovely name and an even lovelier smile.

Her reverie was interrupted by a flustered Trixie who came storming back in. 

”What’s the matter Trixie?”

”I think Tom and Barbara have broken up. I’m not sure, she was drunk when I spoke to her on the phone, and she is hardly ever drunk. She said that he had proposed and asked her to move to Birmingham with him for a new job there, but I think she said no because she didn’t want to leave London and after that she just kept going on about how she loves garlic bread. I think I need to go home, her friend Phyllis was already there but I think I should be there too. Is it alright if leave you I promise I’ll make it up to you tomorrow. I’ll buy you lunch at that little sushi place you like so much and then I’ll give you a private tour of the hospital.” 

”It’s fine Trixie, go help Barbara and send her my love. I’ll see you tomorrrow.”

”Valerie Dyer you are one of a kind!” Trixie said as she leaned over to hug her friend. 

”Just text me when you’re home so I don’t need to worry about you as well.”

”I promise!” and with those words Trixie left the pub leaving Valerie with only a couple of tables to clean. She worked efficiently and was able to close up just after half one and then she stumbled upstairs to the flat she shared with her sister. When she finally made it to bed she looked at her phone to see a message from Trixie that thanked her for being a brick, told her Barbara was doing alright and that she would see her at 11 tomorrow for an early lunch before her shift. Valerie smiled and set her alarm. But she found that her thoughts kept returning to Lucille. She berated herself for being an actual gay disaster, getting herself hung up like this on a complete stranger that she would most likely never meet again. In the end she just resigned herself to the state of her crush and calmed herself with the notion that it would pass. She’d probably not even remember her tomorrow.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry this has taken so long to update. This chapter was really difficult to write for some reason and it didn't help that we got a new cat last week. Anyway I hope you enjoy this chapter and hopefully I'll have time to write over my Easter holidays.

The next day Valerie came in from her morning run feeling pretty good about herself to find Trixie sitting on the sofa in the living room.

”Trixie, why are you here? Weren’t we going to meet up at eleven.” Val asked.

”Yes, but Tom came by the flat and I didn’t feel like staying around when they sorted things out,” the blonde said with a sigh. Valerie could sense that something was off with her friend and decided to not beat around the bush. Trixie wouldn’t be here now if she wasn’t ready to talk. 

”Do you want me to shower before you tell me what’s going on?”

”No it’s fine, I’ve seen you in worse conditions than this,” Trixie said scrunching her nose at Valerie’s less than fasionable workout clothes, as Val made her way over to the sofa. ”So, I got home last night, Barbara was drunk and she told me that Tom had proposed and that she had said no. They had argued and he had apparently left and she had gotten drunk, then called Phyllis and then me. So we got her into bed and this morning when she woke up she said she felt horrible about the way things had happened and called him to talk things through.”

”So that’s good isn’t it?” Valerie prompted but Trixie didn’t bite. ”Trixie, what’s the matter?”

”I think I’m in love with her,” she said quietly, looking down at her hands. 

”Well that was not what I was expecting,” Val said bluntly. Trixie looked up at her and snorted.  
”Neither did I to be honest.” She slumped down in the sofa. ”I just don’t know what to do Val, she’s one of my best friends and up until last night she was in a very comitted relationship that may or may not still be happening.”

”Well, it certainly complicates matters doesn’t it? When did you figure this out Trixie?” 

”Oh I don’t know, it just sort of crept up on me, I didn’t think I’d find anyone else after I lost James but then it just happened. I realised that I got really jealous of Tom everytime he was around and in the end it dawned on me why. I don’t think I admitted it to myself until Christmas” Trixie sighed.

”Christmas Trixie! It’s April, you could have told me sooner,” Valerie said teasingly.

”Well you were in Kenya and then after you came back it was just never the right time.” Trixie said rolling her eyes. Valerie reached over and pulled her friend in for a hug.

”I’m so sorry Trixie.” 

”I mean it’s not your fault,” she laughed.

Now Valerie was the one to roll her eyes, ”You know what I mean, you idiot.”

”I just wish it would have been anyone else, it would have made it easier.”

”Yes, so what is your plan then? Are you going to tell her?” Valerie asked while letting go of her friend.

”I don’t know, I thought I was the kind of person who was brave enough to just come out and say it. But now I’m not so sure. Especially now that her and Tom are where they are. I don’t want to make things even more confusing for her. And if I am lucky maybe it’ll all go away and I can go back to being comfortably single and not in love with my flatmate.”

”You are a good person Beatrix Franklin, you know that right.” Valerie said giving her friend another hug.

”Oh fuck off Dyer,” the muffled response came from against her shoulder.

”So, should I get the ice-cream out of the freezer and turn on Pride and Prejudice to make us forget about the predicament you are in, as well as my lack of a love life?” Valerie suggested.

”No, because then I’ll never be in time for my shift, it’s too long. And I promised you that tour and the sushi,” Trixie said.

”I love how you just assume it would be the 1995 version,” Valerie said feigning annoyance.

”I thought you’d be nice for once and let me watch Colin Firth.”

”When Keira Knightley exists, no fucking way,” Valerie shot back as she got up.

”You’re so gay,” Trixie said and stuck out her tongue.

”Thanks, I really do try my best. I’m gonna jump in the shower quickly and then we’ll leave.”

”I’m still getting that ice-cream though,” Trixie shouted from the sofa as Val went into the bathroom.

———————————————————————————————————————————

Ice-cream, sushi and a lot of chatter later Valerie and Trixie finally got to the hospital. Val had been there a number of times before but today it seemed bigger somehow. She stood in front of the entrance for just a second longer taking it all in.

”Val stop worrying, you don’t start until Monday anyway,” Trixie said as she pulled her through the doors. ”So you have been down here before, but we are going to start in the most important place, the hub of gossip, the cafeteria.”

The girls walked in past the information desk where Trixie greeted the man standing behind the desk. ”Everything alright, Fred?”

”Yes quite, apart from this back ache that just won’t give in.”

”Fred I have told you to go and see Barbara about it, she would have you fixed up in no time. If you don’t get it sorted I will personally drag you to an appointment.”

”Fine, you win… I’ll book it when I finish my shift” he said shaking his head while laughing at Trixie.

”Good, Fred, this is my friend Val, she’s starting on Monday in the A&E as part of the new trauma team. Val, this is Fred, he knows everything that is going on around here and yet you should never trust anything he says especially if he is trying to sell you something,” Trixie said smiling as Val and Fred shook hands.

”Well, welcome to this zoo, I hope you’re going to like it here,” Fred said. 

”Thanks, I'm sure I will” Val responded as Trixie practically pulled her away while saying goodbye to Fred.

”So the thing you should know is that the best gossip comes from the third floor nurses, it’s either us or darlings over at geriatrics,” Trixie said as they turned around the corner at the very end of the main hallway and into a cosy cafe with windows opening up onto a small garden. It was a lot better than Val had expected. Behind the counter was a middle-aged woman cleaning up after what had probably been the lunch rush. 

”Tip number one, this place has the best coffee in the entire hospital and Violet who runs it make the best scones,” Trixie said as they walked up to the counter ”Good afternoon Vi, I just saw Fred and told him to book a appointment with Barbara.” 

”Oh Trixe I’ve been trying to tell him for weeks but he never takes my advice when it’s health related,” she said leaning against the counter.

”Well I told him I’d drag him there if he didn’t go so I think he’ll do it,” Trixie said with a laugh. 

”Well here’s to hoping. He really is the most stubborn man,” Vi said shaking her head. ”So then, what can I get you two?”

”Coffee to go, I think,” Trixie said turning to Val see if she agreed. 

”I wouldn’t mind a cup,” Val said with a smile.

”Two coffees then, milk and sugar for you love?” Vi asked turning to Val.

”No, she takes it black, like her heart,” Trixie said nudging Val with her elbow. 

Val just rolled her eyes at her friend while Vi turned to fix their coffees. Val started looking around the cafe, it was quite empty at the moment. An elderly couple was sitting over in a corner talking, at the table next to them sat a young woman with a pram reading a paper and at a table in the middle sat three people in scrubs, they were hunched over their food. Valerie recognised the look of somebody coming off a long shift just in time for lunch. In a couple of days that would be her again, so tired that one could fall asleep while eating.

”Earth to Valerie Dyer,” Trixie said pulling her back to reality, handing her a coffee. 

”Sorry just caught a glimpse of what my future has in store,” Val said nodding over at the table.

”Well you have a few more days before you are in that situation so enjoy it while it lasts. I thought I would take you around and then we can finish up with the gossips on the maternity ward if you are up for it?”

”That sounds wonderful! Lead the way, Franklin!”

———————————————————————————————————————————

After making their way through all the interesting parts of the hospital, which according to Trixie meant where to find the best places to sleep on a night shift, the best places to get food and the way to the lab where Trixie flirted with the lab tech, something she claimed made sure she never had to wait very long when she had to run tests, they finally made it to the third floor and stopped in the changing rooms so Trixie could change into her scrubs. When they walked into the ward and made it to the desk they saw a tall red head standing behind the desk dressed impeccably in white blouse and a dark pencil skirt, frowning over her papers.

”Well Patsy Mount as I live and breath, I see the honeymoon has treated you well,” Trixie said wiggling her eyebrows at Val as she made her way behind the desk where the obstetrician was standing. Patsy didn’t look up immediately or respond but the two women could see a big smile breaking out on the woman's face.

”Trixie, I think Delia has finally broken her, no quick witted comeback. Who are you and what have you done with Patience Mount?” Val said leaning against the desk looking at her former university flatmate.

”Tell us everything Pats, how was Paris, is married life everything you dreamed off?” Trixie was sitting down on a chair and pushed one over for Val to sit down on.

Patsy shook her head and put her papers down before turning to her friends. ”Paris was lovely and being married to Delia is so wonderful, how are you both?”

”Is that all you’re going to tell us? Because I was hoping for some romance or at least some gushing over your new wife.” Trixie pouted.

”I am at work Trixie, I do not gush when I am at work. Also what are you doing here, I thought you didn’t start until Monday?” Patsy said as she looked over at Val.

”Well Trixie is giving me the unofficial guided tour which has so far covered coffee, gossip and flirting with the lab tech. She said she wanted me to be completely prepared come Monday” Val said.

Patsy laughed and said ”I guess you came up here for gossip then, but I am sorry to disappoint because neither Winifred nor Tony are here today so all is quiet on the gossip front.”

”Well that’s no fun then,” Trixie said. ”So I guess you’ll have to fill us in on what’s going on today then Pats.”

”Not a lot to be honest, I had a scheduled c-section earlier today and then one of the registrars had to do an emergency one just a couple of hours ago it was a bit chaotic. But apart from that it has been a remarkably uneventful day.”

Trixie rolled her eyes, ”Now you’ve spolied it, don’t ever say things like that now it will be a madhouse here later.” 

”I mean my shift ends in an hour so that’s fine with me,” Patsy said smiling at Trixie.

”Traitor.”

Patsy smirked at the blonde before saying ”Actually, while you are both in one place, Delia wanted to know if you wanted to come over for a small dinner party next week to christen the new flat properly.”

”As if they haven’t already done that,” Val said to Trixie under her breath raising her eyebrow suggestively.

”Get your mind out of the gutter Valerie Dyer,” Patsy said shaking her head.

”Sorry, I would love to but I will most likely also be utterly knackered so don’t expect me to be dazzling company,” Val said.

”No one ever expects that from you darling,” Trixie said teasingly.

”Thanks a lot Trixie.” she retorted sticking her toungue

”So would Tuesday work?” Patsy asked ignoring her friend’s childish display.

”It’d be lovely, Patsy” Trixie said.

”Wonderful, that gives me the oppurtunity to find out what is going on in your lives. It feels like I’ve been away far longer than a week.” 

”Well then you better hope that something happens in the next few days because otherwise there will be nothing to find out,” Val said with a snort.

”Well a lot can happen, who knows you might bump into someone cute at the hospital,” Trixie said. 

”Well with my track record it wouldn’t make much of a difference, I keep bumping into cute, straight and completely unavailable women so don’t get your hopes up, girls,” Val laughed as she remembered her run in with Lucille the night before. ”Quite literally actually, I almost decked a girl in the pub last night.”

”What, you didn’t tell me this,” Trixie said stunned. ”Was she cute? Did you get her name and number?” 

”No, Trixie, because I’m almost certain she was straight and I was working.”

”So that means that she was very cute and you were a gay mess, right?” Patsy teased.

Valerie stuck her toungue out at them. ”I’m never telling you guys anything again, you are the worst friends. I’m not gonna sit here and take this abuse.” She said as she stood up and all three of them laughed.

”You know you love us and if I didn’t have to work I would force you to stay and tell us everything but my shift starts in five minutes” Trixie said.

”Well I better get on anyway, I still have some packing to do before the big move, I’ll see you tomorrow Trixie." Valerie said as she collected her things and hugged her friends. ”Patsy if you have nothing better to do you can always come and help me carry all the boxes.”

”We’ll see, I have to find out what Delia has planned but we might pop by,” Patsy said.

”Tell your wife that if she puts her training to good use and helps me, I’ll buy her food.”

”She might take you up on that actually.” Patsy said smiling.

”That was my plan, see you tomorrow then,” Val said as she walked out the door. 

Once outside she turned around the corner to make her way to the lifts and did not have time to notice that someone was in her way and walked straight into them. In the process she dropped her phone and as she bent down to pick it up she said, ”I’m so sorry, I should have payed more attention to where I was going.” 

As she looked up she realised that some higher power had it out for her, because there was Lucille, dressed in hospital scrubs looking even lovelier than yesterday.

”Well, we really have to stop meeting like this!” she said with a laugh as Val stood up. ”It was Valerie, right?”

”Yes and I guess we do. So do you work here then?” Valerie cursed herself for asking such an obvious question.

”Very observant. Yes, I am a registrar in the maternity ward.” Lucille said with a smile. ”Now I don’t mean to pry but you don’t seem like you should be a patient here, am I right?”

”No I am not. I’m a friend of Trixie Franklin’s and we ended up here after lunch because she’s just starting her shift,” Valerie said. 

”Oh, that explains it then,” Lucille said just as her pager went off. She looked down and sighed. ”I’m really sorry but I’ve got to run, it was really nice seeing you again. Maybe I’ll see you around then.” 

”Yeah, see you,” Val said as Lucille jogged off towards the ward.

Valerie looked after her and when she was out of sight, she walked to the lifts. Once inside she groaned loudly. Not thinking about Lucille had been going so well, but clearly that was not going to last now. Especially because she had said that it had been really nice to see her again and Valerie couldn’t figure out what that was supposed to mean. Was she just being nice or was she flirting. As if she wasn't enough of a mess already...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading, I really hope you enjoyed it. If you have any constructive criticism it is more than welcome. Have a good day/night!  
> <3


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like I should apologise for leaving this at chapter 2 and then not updating for about nine months but med school has been kicking my arse this term and I have a bid exam coming up after Christmas so I can not promise that I’ll update anything else until February. However I just want to thank everybody for their lovely comments I have read most of them and I really do appreciate them so much.
> 
> I hope you enjoy this chapter even if it is a bit of a filler chapter.
> 
> I noticed that the entire chapter hadn’t been successfully added the first time I posted this but I have fixed that now so it has a proper ending now. Sorry about that!

By two o’clock the next day Val and Trixie had retreated to the couch and were recovering from the exhaustation of carrying Val’s belongings up five flights of stairs for a good three hours. The lorry downstairs still had a few things left in it but after Trixie had carried her fourth box of books she had refused to go downstairs before taking a break.

”Val, you really have too many books,” she was draped across the armrest and looked extremely sophisticated. Her legs were slung over Val’s, who had her feet up on the coffee table and was slouching. 

”There is no such thing as too many books Trixie.” 

Val had started moving at nine o’clock and when she had arrived at the flat around eleven she had forced Trixie out of bed and plied her with coffee to get her to help. Most of the things she owned had been stored while she had been out of the country because her sister had taken over her flat but since this was to be her permanent home for the forseeable future she had gotten all of her things out of storage, including all of the books she had amassed during her life.

”So when is Barbara coming back?” 

”She messaged me earlier, apparently she is seeing Tom after work so I guess she won’t be home before eight unless she stays the night at his” Trixie said while inspecting her nails with indifference.

”So, did you see her last night?”

”Yes.” 

”And what was the news?”

”They are back together and have decided to stay in London for the time being. She said that she realised that she was freaked out by the proposal and Birmingham and didn’t handle it too well. They talked it through and decided to give it another chance and they would try staying on the same page.”

”I’m sorry Trix,” Valerie patted her friends leg. 

”It’s fine, honestly, I’ll sort myself out.” Trixie said giving Val one of her patent ”smiling through the pain”-kind of smiles.

Valerie was just about to say something when her phone rang. Valerie was not enthused about talking to anyone until she read the display which said: The Welsh one.  
“It’s Delia,” she said to Trixie before picking up. “Hello Delia, how are you?”

“Hi Valerie, I’m wonderful and also on my way over. My wonderful wife told me that if I help you move in you will buy me food and I am really craving some pizza,” Delia said on the other end.

“I’m sure we can order up some pizza, are you far off?”

“I will be there in less than five minutes?” 

Val sat up, “Great I’ll order us some pizza then!”

“Ok, see you in a bit.” Delia said before hanging up.

“The same as usual Trix?” Val asked while scanning through her contacts for the number for the little Italian place on the corner. Trixie had taken her there the first time she had visited after Trixie had left the army and she had fallen in love with the food. So much that it had been on her list of places to go every time she came back home.

“If you’re ordering from Francesca’s then yes.” Trixie said. Valerie dialled the restaurant and placed her order with the lovely older lady that owned the restaurant. After hanging up she got up to set the table.

“Is Patsy coming as well?” Trixie asked from the couch.

“No it’ll just be the old gang back together,” Val said referring to the time the three had spent in the army together. Delia had served together with Val and Trixie before going back to work in orthopaedics in the NHS. On a faithful day when Val was home on leave she had managed to introduce Delia to Patsy anticipating that they would get on wonderfully. Little did she know that the small dinner she had organised would lead to them getting married. 

Val had been the first person Delia called when she was going to propose both because she was a close friend but also because she was the closest thing Patsy had to family since she was estranged from her father who lived in Hong Kong. 

”How nice, maybe Delia will be less tight-lipped about the honey-moon than Patsy was,” Trixie said as she got up from the couch. 

”Don’t hold your breath, those to are truly a united front about most things. Well apart from which team to cheer for when there is a Wales v. England rugby game,” Val said.

”Yes but you do know I can be very persuasive and Patsy Mount is not here to balance that out now,” Trixie said as she sat down at the table.

Just as Valerie set the last plate on the table there was a knock on the door and instead of either of them getting the door both women simply shouted: ”It’s open.” 

The door opened and a petite brunette walked in followed by a cute German Shepherd-mix. As soon as the dog was inside the door she took off as a shot to greet the two women at the table.

Valerie greeted the dog who was excitedly wagging her tail, knowing very well that Val had a real weak spot for her and could be easily persuaded to give treats.

”So I know the dog is cuter but I do want a proper greeting as well,” said Delia in her welsh lilt as she made her way over to the table. Val stood up and hugged her friend while the dog made her way over to Trixie.

”So how was Paris then?” Trixie asked as she made her way over to hug Delia.

”Oh, it was lovely,” Delia said. ”We stayed at this wonderful hotel down by the river and we had a suite with a view of the Notre-Dame. We went to the Louvre and Versailles and then Patsy surprised me with a trip to Giverny to see Monet’s gardens. Oh you should see the pictures.” She gushed as she got her phone out of her pocket to show them a picture of the couple embracing on the Japanese footbridge. They both looked radiantly happy.

”And here I thought you wouldn’t leave the suite for the entire duration of the honeymoon,” Trixie said teasingly. 

”Oh there was more than one time we ordered room service if we put it like that,” Delia said rolling her eyes at Trixie as she sat down. ”Garbo, come here.”

The dog who had been roaming around the apartment came trotting to her owner and sat down next to the chair.

”Oh you are no fun Delia Busby, even though Pats was far more tightlipped about your escapades,” Trixie said with a pout.

”Well you know Trix, what happens in Paris stays in Paris,” Delia said and turned to Val. ”So how about that pizza?”

”It’s going to be a few more minutes so I figured you should do some actual work first to earn it,” Valerie said.

”Yes, ma´m, put me to work then,” Delia got up from her chair.

Trixie sighed loudly at the thought and the two others laughed at her.  
”You can go and get the pizza if you are so worn out, it’s another ten minutes till it’s done and before you are back here we will probably have gotten the last things out of the lorry.” Valerie said to her friend who had dramatically draped herself over the table at the thought of carrying more boxes.

”Fine,” Trixie said sitting up again as the other two made their way to the door. They left the dog in the apartment and started walking down the stairs. 

”So Pats said that you are coming over on Wednesday,” Delia said as they reaced the front door.

”Yes but as I told her I will hardly be good company because it’s my third day at work and I will most likely be completely worn out,” Val said.

”Well don’t worry about that, it will just be the two of you, Barbara, Phyllis, and then Patsy invited a couple of her colleagues as well.”

”Oh, that’s nice,” Valerie said and then realised that it might mean that Lucille might be included in that. ”Anyone I would know?” she asked trying to sound as casual as possible while opening the back of the lorry so they could grab some of the boxes.

”Well I think you’ve met Winifred before but then she invited Lucille as well, she’s one of the doctors and she’s really wonderful, I think you’d really like her,” Delia responded as they made their way up the stairs.

”Oh, that’s nice,” Valerie said, smiling to herself at the thought of meeting Lucille properly this time. 

”Yeah, honestly I think you’ll get along really well, she used to work as a librarian in Jamaica before she decided to train as a doctor and she’s really witty and so kind,” Delia said while they worked their way up the stairs. ”She charmed Patsy in like a week which you know is not easily done.”

”Oh, if she can charm Patsy Mount I’m sure that I’m an easy mark,” Val said while silently acknowledging that she was already thoroughly charmed but also probably in for another round of straight girl induced heartbreak. Why did she always have to do this to herself.  
_______________________________________________________________________________________

The weekend flew by and before she knew it was Monday and Valerie felt like it was the first day of school all over again. She was excited and terrified at the same time. 

The new trauma unit was headed up by Shelagh Turner who was one of the country’s top trauma surgeons. The first time Val had meet her was at a conference where Mrs. Turner had presented research on post-operative care for major trauma patients and she had been so starstruck by this tiny Scottish woman who commanded the attention of the entire room without even raising her voice the slightest. Val had managed to get the chance to talk to her at the conference and had quickly realised that the woman was more or less a genius and also one of the most organised people she had ever met and that’s saying a lot considering the fact she spent three years living with Patsy Mount. When the rumour went about that she was opening up a new trauma unit after leaving her old position Valerie had applied for a position at once and had been so excited when she was offered the job.

As she walked in that morning fifteen minutes before she was due to meet up with her new clinical lead, she found Mrs Turner in her office with a man holding a small child in his arms. She knocked on the door and both adults looked over and Mrs Turner motioned for her to come in.

”Good morning miss Dyer, glad to see that you are here so early,” mrs Turner said as she came over to shake her hand.

”Well, you can take the girl out of the army but you can’t take the army out of the girl,” Valerie said with a laugh. Shelagh Turner gave her an approving smile.

”Well that is certainly good. May I introduce my husband Patrick Turner and our daughter Angela. They were kind enough to take me in to work this morning for good luck.”

The man was a little bit older with dark hair and very kind smile. The young girl looked like she was about three years old and looked like an absolute darling.

”Lovely to meet you,” Val said as she shook the man’s hand. ”You too.” 

”Not to be a bother dear, but maybe it’s time to take Angela to nursery school and make sure Tim gets off to school before you have to be at the surgery,” Mrs Turner said to her husband.

”Yes, you are quite right,” he said looking at his wristwatch. ”Angela and I will come and get you at six o’clock.” The Turners kissed goodbye and Angela got a proper hug before they left the office.

”So miss Dyer I hope you are ready to get to work because we have been preparing for months and we are all really excited both to have you here but even more so to start working. We will hold our morning meetings in the room next to this and I will introduce you to everone. Most of the people have come with me from the Royal or have come from A&E here so it’s really only you and a couple of the nurses that are completely new but I’m sure you’ll fit right in.” 

”I sure hope I will and I think I’m just as excited to get back to work,” Valerie said.

”Well then no time like the present, let’s go and see if the others are as on time as you.”  
_______________________________________________________________________________________

By three o’clock Valerie was spent. The morning meeting had been over in a flash, she had been introduced to everyone and she really enjoyed meeting all her new collegues. A few of the nurses had worked together for close to thirty years and they had jokingly told Val that they had taught Shelagh Turner everything she knew and from the way Shelagh spoke of them Val was sure that she certainly thought so. Especially the head nurse Julienne, the two of them worked together like a well oiled machine and the admiration that Shelagh held for the older woman was obvious.

Val had the oppurtunity to see them in action when two victims of a car crash came in and Valerie was asked to assist mrs Turner on an sixteen year old girl with a major pelvic fracture. It was hard work, the morning and lunch was spent in theatre but by the end of it the prognosis was good and Valerie was really excited about the prospect of working with these people.

Now she was making her way down to the cafeteria to get some food before anything else happened. Even though there were two other surgeons working today apart from mrs Turner and herself she knew that when it came to major trauma there was no telling how many of them would be needed if there was a major accident.

She found a short line of people queing to order and simply took her place in the end. She rolled her shoulders a bit noticing the familiar stiffness that came from standning in surgery for more than a couple of hours. Looking at the menu she saw that they served lasanga and was extremely thankful for that. Her reverie over cheese and pasta was interrupted when she heard a soft hello from behind her.

She turned around and there was none other than Lucille.

”Hello, nice to meet you without the risk of causing you bodily harm,” Valerie said with a smile. Lucille laughed and Valerie thought to herself that it might be one of the best laughs she had ever heard. 

”Yes we seem to bump into each other don’t we,” Lucille said. ”However this new look is surprising, I didn’t now you worked here!”

Valerie realised that she hadn’t let that piece of information slip the last time they had met. ”It’s very recent to say the least, first day today actually.”

”Oh, really what do you do then?” 

”I’m part of the new trauma unit,” Valerie said showing her the new access card which read consultant trauma surgeon. 

”Oh first day, how has it been going so far then?” she asked as they moved forward in the line.

”Good, I was in theatre until about half an hour ago but it was very exciting, working with Shelagh Turner is a dream come true. But right now I am mostly excited about having some lunch,” Valerie said with a laugh.

”Oh that’s good can I join you then, I have been stuck in delivery for three hours and haven’t had the time to eat either. If that’s alright with you?”

”That’d be really nice actually,” Valerie said.

”So how come you decided to go into surgery, are you especially good with your hands?” Lucille asked which more or less caused Valerie to black out for a second. She did not just ask a lesbian that question, Val thought to herself.

”Yes I guess so,” she managed to squeak. She cleared her throat and was saved by the fact that she was at the till. The woman she had met with Trixie on Friday was there.

”What can I get you love?”

”Lasanga and cup of tea, please.” Val said with a smile.

”And you Lucille?”

”I’ll have the same, thanks Vi.” Lucille said. They both paid for their meals and sat down to wait while the food was prepared.

”So how come you were a barmaid on Friday and now you are a trauma surgeon,” Lucille asked when they had sat down.

”Oh it’s my aunt’s pub it’s been in the family for generations and I was covering a shift for my sister, being the good older sister I am,” Val said. 

”You seemed quite adept at pulling pints, not your first time behind the bar I guess,” Lucille said while she leaned back in the chair and gave Val a smile.

”No I worked there part time from the day I was of legal drinking age until I graduated and then every time my sister decides to skip work to hang out with her wanker of a boyfriend.” Val said.

”Oh what is it about younger sisters and chosing good for nothing men,” Lucille said with a laugh. ”My sister, bless her heart, has been seeing the same boy on and off for four years and every time I go home to Jamaica he’s done something stupid and they’ve split up and then the next time I ring they’re back together. I do not understand how they put up with men like that.”

”Neither do I,” Val said not adding that she really didn’t get romantic realtionships with men on any level. 

They sat in comfortable silence for a while, Lucille started looking around. Valerie looked at her, she really had the nicest smile, she was simply taking in the people around her with such warmth in her eyes and Val was utterly captivated by this woman that she hardly knew anything about.

They were both interrupted by the arrival of their food which was served by a young man who Lucille called Reggie. They thanked him for the food and both started eating with the urgency of someone who has had too long in between meals.

”So how long have you been working here?” Valerie asked Lucille in between bites.

”Oh just over a year and a half, I started my specialist training in York but then my brother moved over here and I decided that moving to London to be closer to him was the best thing and I was lucky to get a place here. I really like it here, the only problem is that I live in Ilford at the moment and getting here in the morning is a hassle.”

”Oh I get that, it was lucky that Trixie needed another roommate so I only have about a ten minute bike ride in the morning to get here,” Valerie said.

”Oh that’s lovely, sure you couldn’t fit me in that flat as well,” Lucille said jokingly. 

”I’m very sorry all filled up at the moment but I’ll let you know if anything comes up,” Valerie said matching the tone.

”Well if it does I’m your woman. How do you know Trixie anyways?” she asked and Valerie was just about to answer when Lucille’s phone started beeping. ”Sorry, duty calls. It seems one of my patients decided to make his debut a bit earlier than expected.”

”Don’t worry, I can handle finishing this on my own, I’m just sorry you won’t get to finish your meal.”

”It’s not the first nor the last time,” Lucille said as she got up. ”It was really nice to see you again even if it was very unexpected. So I guess I’ll see you around Valerie!”

”Yes you too” Valerie said as Lucille walked away waving back at her. Valerie groaned and put her head in her hand. Worst crush ever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to steal from the Christmas special and that’s why Delia and Patsy are now dog owners. I personally loved the Greta Garbo reference as the proud Swede I am so I kept the name as well.
> 
> I tried to proof read this but my brain is off on Christmas holiday so I’m really sorry if there are any major problems with thw writing.

**Author's Note:**

> So this is probably riddled with mistakes and I am a stressed out medical student so any details that are wrong are due to bad research. Corrections and constructive criticism are more than welcome. I hope you enjoyed it and I will try to update regularly but some times life might get in the way.


End file.
